Thursday, July 29, 2010

What Benefits Can Buddhism Bring to Humankind?

Sayadaw U Dhammapāla

Tonight’s talk is on “What Benefits Can Buddhism Bring to Humankind?“. Why is this topic chosen? Because this is the concern of every human being; everyone wants to be happy, not to be sad. But are you all happy?

At one time the Buddha was asked why everybody wished to be happy, but most of them were not happy? The Buddha answered that it was due to jealousy and stinginess.

Thus, owing to these defilements many people seek only for their own happiness, ignoring the welfare of others, even to the extent of causing harm to others. However seeking happiness in the wrong way brings little joy, but much suffering. The worst thing is that they are unaware that they are wrong, because they cannot differentiate what is wholesome and what is unwholesome. You may think that this is not true, and hold that a normal person can differentiate what is wholesome and what is unwholesome.

To this, let me ask you a few questions. In the morning when you take a copy of the newspaper and read, what does it teach you? In the evening, having come back from work and taken your dinner, you sit down and watch TV, and what does TV teach you then?. Both of them teach you to increase your greed, showing that various kinds of sensual pleasure are real happiness. Furthermore they show you how to be violent. In short, most of the contents of the newspaper and TV are full of those teachings which increase your greed, anger, and delusion. And under their powerful influence, many people are led onto the wrong path. But it is hard to say that the fault lies only with the mass media, because it just provides what people want and what they think is good. However, whether it is good or not, it does not depend on how you think. We can know this from many suttas given by the Buddha.

The Samyutta Nikaya states that: Once a famous stage manager and actor named Talaputa went to see the Buddha. He said that his teacher had told him that an actor, through making people laugh by composing and playing false stories, would, after death, be reborn in the company of laughing devas. And he asked the Buddha what was his opinion on this matter. The Buddha told him not to ask that question. However the stage manager insisted and asked the same question three times. Then the Buddha said that he would, if that kamma ripens, be reborn in the laughing hell. The reason is that he brought defiled or tainted happiness to many people, and made their greed, anger and delusion increase.

Thus one of the benefits that Buddhism provides the human world is the knowledge of what is wholesome and what is unwholesome. This is a kind of right view which is a very important factor for your welfare as well as that of others, because only when you have right view will you know how to walk on the right path. For example, after listening to the Buddha, the stage manager Talaputa gave up his actor career and became a bhikkhu. Then he practised meditation and before long attained arahatship. On the contrary, he who has no right view will probably do whatever he likes, such as indulging in sensual pleasures, craving for name and fame, drinking, gambling. These will bring him suffering for a long time. On the other hand, a person with right view would likely engage in wholesome deeds, such as performing giving, practising virtuous conduct, cultivating loving-kindness and compassion, and purifying his mind through meditation. These will bring him happiness for a long time.

In the Dhammapada verses 316 and 317, the Buddha says:

“Those who are ashamed of what is not shameful, and unashamed of what is shameful, such beings, embracing wrong views, go to the woeful state.”

“Those who see fear in the non-fearsome, and do not see fear in the fearsome, such beings, embracing wrong views, go to the woeful state.”

These words of the Buddha are a real reflection of the modern age. For example, many poor people are ashamed of their poverty, and many rich people are so proud of their wealth; unattractive people are ashamed of their ugliness, and beautiful people are so proud of their beauty. But are money and beauty the yardsticks of what is shameful and what is not shameful. Certainly they are not. In either cases, if the person is virtuous, then there is nothing to be ashamed of, but if the person is immoral, then even if he is very rich and handsome, there is nothing to be proud of. Having known this you should always examine whether the thing you are going to do is wholesome or unwholesome. And through doing only what is wholesome, you become harmless to other beings; this is a kind of giving of fearlessness. Furthermore you yourselves also will gain benefits from your wholesome deeds.

Here I shall give you a summary of the Bālapandita Sutta, the Discourse of Fools and Wise Men, to show that how a fool causes his own destruction, and how a wise man uplifts his own mind. In the sutta, the Buddha says to bhikkhus thus:

“Bhikkhus, there are these three characteristics of a fool, signs of a fool, attributes of a fool. What are the three? Here a fool is one who thinks bad thoughts, speaks bad words, and does bad deeds. If a fool were not so, how would the wise know him thus: “This person is a fool, an untrue man”? But because a fool is one who thinks bad thoughts, speaks bad words, and does bad deeds, the wise know him thus: “This person is a fool, an untrue man.”

Then the Buddha tells the bhikkhus that a fool, who kills living beings, takes what is not given, wrongly conducts himself in sensual pleasures, speaks falsehood, and indulges himself in wine, liquor, and intoxicants, will feel pain and grief here and now in three ways: First, when he sees people are discussing, he thinks that they are talking about his bad deeds. Second, when the fool sees a criminal is being punished by a king, and having many kinds of torture inflicted on him, he, being one who did the same kinds of crime, would be frightened. Third, when he rests on a chair, bed, or the ground, the evil actions that he did in the past cover him, over-spread him, and envelop him. Then the fool thinks: “I have not done what is good, I have not done what is wholesome, I have not made myself a shelter from anguish. I have done what is evil, I have done what is cruel, I have done what is wicked. When I pass away, I shall go to the destination of those who have not done what is good, … of those who have done what is wicked.”

After that, the Buddha says:

“A fool who has given himself over to misconduct of body, speech, and mind, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappears in a state of deprivation, in an unhappy destination, even in hell.

“Were it rightly speaking to be said of anything: “That is utterly unwished for, utterly disagreeable,” it is of hell that, rightly speaking, this should be said, so much so that it is hard to find a simile for the suffering in hell.”

When this was said, a bhikkhu asked the Blessed One: “But, Venerable Sir, can a simile be given?”

“It can be, bhikkhu,” the Blessed One said. “Bhikkhus, suppose men caught a robber and presented him to the king, saying: “Sire, here is a robber. Order what punishment you will for him.” Then the king said: “Go and strike this man in the morning with a hundred spears.” And they struck him in the morning with a hundred spears. Then at noon the king asked: “How is that man?” -”Sire, he is still alive.” Then the king said: “Go and strike this man at noon with a hundred spears.” And they struck him at noon with a hundred spears. Then in the evening the king asked: “How is that man?” – “Sire, he is still alive.” Then the king said: “Go and strike this man in the evening with a hundred spears.” And they struck him in the evening with a hundred spears. What do you think, bhikkhus? Would that man experience pain and grief because of being struck with the three hundred spears?”

“Venerable Sir, that man would experience pain and grief because of being struck with even one spear, let alone three hundred.”

Then, taking a small stone the size of his hand, the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus thus: “What do you think, bhikkhus? Which is the greater, this small stone that I have taken, the size of my hand, or Himalaya, the king of mountains?”

“Venerable Sir, the small stone that the Blessed One has taken, the size of his hand, does not count beside Himalaya, the king of mountains; it is not even a fraction, there is no comparison.”

“So too, bhikkhus, the pain and grief that the man would experience because of being struck with the three hundred spears does not count beside the suffering of hell; it is not even a fraction, there is no comparison.

“Now the wardens of hell torture him with the fivefold transfixing. They drive a red-hot iron stake through one hand, they drive a red-hot iron stake through another hand, they drive a red-hot iron stake through one foot, they drive a red-hot iron stake through another foot, they drive a red-hot iron stake through his belly. There he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings. Yet he does not die so long as that evil action has not exhausted its result.

“Next the wardens of hell throw him down and pare him with axes. There he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings. Yet he does not die so long as that evil action has not exhausted its result.

“Next the wardens of hell set him with his feet up and his head down and pare him with adzes. There he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings. Yet he does not die so long as that evil action has not exhausted its result.

“Next the wardens of hell harness him to a chariot and drive him back and forth across burning ground, blazing, and glowing. There he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings. Yet he does not die so long as that evil action has not exhausted its result.

“Next the wardens of hell make him climb up and down a great mound of burning coals, blazing, and glowing. There he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings. Yet he does not die so long as that evil action has not exhausted its result.

“Next the wardens of hell take him feet up and head down and plunge him into a red-hot metal cauldron, burning, blazing, and glowing. He is cooked there in a swirl of froth. And as he is being cooked there in a swirl of froth, he is swept now up, now down, and now across. There he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings. Yet he does not die so long as that evil action has not exhausted its result.

“Next the wardens of hell throw him into the Great Hell. Now as to that Great Hell, bhikkhus: It has four corners and is built

With four doors, one set in each side,

Walled up with iron and all around

And shut in with an iron roof.

Its floor as well is made of iron

And heated till it glows with fire.

The range is a full hundred leagues

Which it covers all-pervasively.

“Bhikkhus, I could tell you in many ways about hell. So much so that it is hard to find a simile for the suffering in hell.”

I do not quote these words of the Buddha to frighten you, but just to show the facts, so that you know how to avoid falling into such a pathetic state.

In the sutta the Buddha gives also a simile to show how long the fool has to suffer in the woeful states. There he says:

“Suppose a man threw into the sea a yoke with one hole in it, and the east wind carried it to the west, and the west wind carried it to the east, and the north wind carried it to the south, and the south wind carried it to the north. Suppose there were a blind turtle that came up to the surface once at the end of each century. What do you think, bhikkhus? Would that blind turtle put his neck into that yoke with one hole in it?”

“He might, Venerable Sir, sometime or other at the end of a long period.”

“Bhikkhus, the blind turtle would take less time to put his neck into that yoke with a single hole in it than a fool, once gone to perdition, would take to regain the human state, I say. Why is that? Because there is no practising of the Dhamma there, no practising of what is righteous, no doing of what is wholesome, no performance of merit. There, mutual devouring and the slaughter of the weak prevails.

“If, sometime or other, at the end of a long period, that fool comes back to the human state, it is into a low family that he is reborn-into a family of outcasts or hunters or bamboo-workers or cartwrights or scavengers-one that is poor with little to eat and drink, surviving with difficulty, where he scarcely finds food and clothing; and he is ugly, unsightly, and misshapen, sickly, blind, cripple-handed, lame, or paralysed; he gets no food, drink, clothes, vehicles, garlands, scents and unguents, bed, lodging, and light; he misconducts himself in body, speech, and mind, and having done that, on the dissolution of the body, after death, he reappears in a state of deprivation, in an unhappy destination, in perdition, even in hell.

“Bhikkhus, suppose a gambler at the very first unlucky throw loses his child and his wife and all his property and furthermore goes into bondage himself, yet an unlucky throw such as that is negligible; it is a far more unlucky throw when a fool who misconducts himself in body, speech, and mind, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappears in a state of deprivation, in an unhappy destination, in perdition, even in hell. This is the complete perfection of the fool’s grade.”

Thus it is said that hell is the real home of a fool, and only after a long time in hell they take a short vocation in the human world. And after the short vocation, he will go back to hell. That is why the Buddha says that it is difficult to be born as a human being. However many people do not really appreciate being born as a human being. They regret that they did not make a proper use of human life only when they are reborn in the woeful states, but then it is too late.

After suffering in the great hell for a long time, a fool will be reborn in a minor hell. After suffering for a long time there, he will be reborn in another minor hell. After suffering thus for a long time in various hells, he will be reborn in the peta world. Again he has to suffer for a long time there, and then he may be reborn as an animal. In the animal world, mutual devouring and the slaughter of the weak prevails, and he makes a lot of bad kamma. After death he is again reborn in hell. After going in such a cycle for many times, he may be reborn as a human being. But again he makes a lot of bad kamma, and after death he is reborn in hell. Thus we can call a fool as a permanent inhabitant of hell.

From here we can see how a fool without right view wrongly conducts himself in body, speech, and mind, bringing himself destruction. Thus it is very important that we are able to differentiate between the wholesome and the unwholesome, and to act in accordance with the wholesome, so that we can promote our own welfare as well as that of others. While Buddhism shows you the danger of unwholesome deeds, it shows also the benefit of wholesome deeds. This is a real benefit that modern science cannot provide. Further, Buddhism can benefit humankind not only in this life, but also in the life to come, as the Buddha says in the Bālapandita Sutta:

“A wise man who has given himself over to good conduct of body, speech, and mind, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappears in a happy destination, even in heaven.

And in the sutta, the Buddha further says:

“If, sometime or other, at the end of a long period, the wise man comes back to the human state, it is into a high family that he is reborn–into a family of well-to-do nobles, or well-to-do brahmins, or well-to-do householders–one that is rich, of great wealth, of great possessions, with abundant gold and silver, with abundant assets and means, and with abundant money and grain. He is handsome, comely and graceful, possessing supreme beauty of complexion. He obtains food and drink, clothes, vehicles, garlands, scents and unguents, bed, lodging, and light. He conducts himself well in body, speech, and mind, and having done so, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappears in a happy destination, even in the heavenly world.

“Bhikkhus, suppose a gambler at the very first lucky throw won a great fortune, yet a lucky throw such as that is negligible; it is a far more lucky throw when a wise man who conducts himself well in body, speech, and mind, and having done so, on the dissolution of the body, after death, reappears in a happy destination, even in the heavenly world. This is the complete perfection of the wise man’s grade.”

That is what the Blessed One said. The bhikkhus were satisfied and delighted in the Blessed One’s words. And dear audience, are you satisfied with and delighted in the Blessed One’s words?

If you want to be really delighted, you have to live in accordance with what the Buddha says, only then can you benefit from the Buddha’s words and be delighted. However, although most Buddhists know the natural law of kamma and kamma-result in their heads, they do not take it into their hearts; they believe in it, but do not practise in accordance with it. A fool will only hope that there is no bad result from bad kamma, and there is spontaneous good result without having performed a good kamma. But the natural law of kamma and kamma-result does not bother whether you believe in it or not, or if you like it or not; it will still work according to its own principle: good begets good, bad begets bad. Thus the result we will get depends on what we do, not what we hope.

Buddhists always talk about loving-kindness and compassion. But that is not good enough. They must put them into action. They must practise giving wisely with a loving mind. They must at least keep their five precepts pure. If a person does not keep the five basic precepts, but kills living beings, steals others‘ property, commits sexual misconduct and so on as he likes, then can we say that he is compassionate? Certainly he is not. How can a compassionate person kill living beings? Such a person is not only not dear to other beings, but also not dear to himself. As regards this, we can understand from the Kosala Samyutta of Samyutta Nikaya.

Once King Pasenadi said to the Buddha: “Venerable Sir, once when I was alone, retired to a quiet place, this thought arose in my mind, “Who are dear to themselve, and who are not dear to themselves?” Then, Venerable Sir, I thought, “Those who practise unwholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions are not dear to themselves. Even though they may say, “I love myself“, they do not love themselves. Why is that? Because what they have done is what their enemy would do to them. That is why they do not love themselves.

On the other hand, those who practise wholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions are dear to themselves. Even they say, “I do not love myself“, they do love themselves. Why is that? Because what they have done is what their friend would do to them.

To the king‘s thoughts, the Buddha said: “That is so, Sire, that is so. What you have said I will repeat and confirm it.”

Thus, if you really love yourselves, you should act in accordance with what the Buddha approved of, and with what the Buddha says in the Dhammapada verse 157:

“If one knows oneself to be dear (to oneself), let one keep close watch upon oneself. During any of the three watches the wise man should keep vigil.”

Here the three watches mean the three periods of the life of a man.

So if you wish for your own welfare you should do good, and if you wish for others‘ welfare you should also do good. You should practise generosity, giving to those who are in need. In this way you benefit both yourselves and others. What benefits can you get from giving? In the Culakammavibhavga Sutta or the Shorter Exposition of Action of Majjhima Nikaya, the Buddha says:

“Here, student, some man or woman gives food, drink, clothing, carriage, garlands, scents, unguents, beds, dwelling, and lamps to recluses or brahmins. Because of performing and undertaking such action, on the dissolution of the body, after death, he reappears in a happy destination, even in the heavenly world. But if on the dissolution of the body, after death, he does not reappear in a happy destination, in the heavenly world, but instead comes back to the human state, then wherever he is reborn he is wealthy.“

However the Buddha says that only the giving of those who have pure virtuous conduct can be fulfilled. That means you must keep your five precepts pure. Further, if you keep the basic five precepts you will also get their respective good result. Taking the first precept of non-killing as an example, the Buddha says in the Culakammavibhanga Sutta:

“Here, student, some man or woman, abandoning the killing of living beings, abstains from killing living beings; with rod and weapon laid aside, gentle and kindly, he abides compassionate to all living beings. Because of performing and undertaking such action, on the dissolution of the body, after death, he reappears in a happy destination, even in the heavenly world. But if on the dissolution of the body, after death, he does not reappear in a happy destination, in the heavenly world, but instead comes back to the human state, then wherever he is reborn he is long-lived.”

Now, you may doubt whether there is future life. To this, you should reflect wisely. If there is no future life, to do good still gives benefits in your present life, such as living with a peaceful mind, having a good name, being praised by the wise, having no remorse. But if there is future life, you will be happier in your future life. Just like what the Buddha says in the Dhammapada verse 16:

“He rejoices here, he rejoices hereafter, in both worlds the well-doer rejoices. He rejoices, exceedingly rejoices, seeing his own pure deeds.”

On the other hand, even if there is no future life, to do bad will still give yourselves suffering in the present life, such as living with an ever agitated mind, having a notorious name, blamed by the wise, having a mind filled with remorse, etc. And if there is future life, you will experience more pain in your future life. Just like what the Buddha says in the Dhammapada verse 17:

“He grieves here, he grieves hereafter, in both worlds the evil-doer grieves. “I have done evil” is the thought that torments him. Still greater is the grief when he goes to the states of woe.”

Considering this you should do only what is good; in this way you will have no loss in this life and in the life to come.

From tonight‘s talk, I hope you now know what benefits Buddhism can give to humankind. They are: (1) the knowledge of virtuous conduct and mental development which is far superior to the material development provided by modern science, and (2) the good results accrued from that mental development. These benefits are not that which gives you short-lived happiness, like the honey on a sharp blade. You can experience the benefits without having to suffer for them later. However these are not the highest kind of benefit that Buddhism can give to humankind.

In my next two talks I will tell you the higher benefits that you can gain from practising Buddhism. And before I stop tonight‘s talk, I would like to cite a verse from the Dhammapada:

“A man defiles himself through his own evil actions; he purifies himself by avoiding evil. Purity and impurity depend on oneself. No one can purify another.”

This means that if you want to better your life and uplift your mind, you yourselves have to put forth effort in cultivating purity; others cannot do it for you.